


Far from home, close to heart

by wolfypuppypiles



Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Angst, Blood, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Grief, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Mourning, Nightmares, Peter Parker Needs a Break, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home, Uncle Happy, Whump, no major spoilers but it won't make a lot of sense until you've seen the movie, post mission patch up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2019-07-17
Packaged: 2020-06-30 04:10:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19845298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfypuppypiles/pseuds/wolfypuppypiles
Summary: Peter misses Tony. He's tired and sore and sad and all he needs is for someone to take care of him. Lucky for our favourite spider Happy Hogan is on Uncle Patrol and just what Peter needs.Basically, that bridge scene in Far from home after everything goes down but its just whump and fluff with MJ learning exactly what being Spider-Man entails.Spoilers obviously.





	Far from home, close to heart

**Author's Note:**

> So, this idea came to me as soon as I watched the movie which was amazzzing. Thank god I get free movies cause I watched it twice in the first week it came out. Anyway, I didn't finish it till now at 1:36 AM so I hope you like it! And yes I'm still working on "when we all fall asleep where do we go?" hopefully I'll have the next chapter up soon.

MJ ran, hair in her eyes, mace heavy in her shaking hands but the only thing running through her mind was Peter. Was he alive? Was he okay? Did he stop Mysterio?

She followed the path of destruction to where the worst of the mess was, racing across the bridge until she saw him. 

She didn’t call his name, no matter how much she wanted to but the truth was that it had nothing to do with keeping his identity safe, it’s just that when she opened her mouth nothing came out. 

He called for her, scraped up and limping and they raised their arms in sync, meeting in the middle where she crashed into him. 

“Are you okay?!” 

The breath knocked out of her but she didn’t care, hugging him as close as she could as he babbled against her neck. 

“MJ, I’m so sorry. I should have stopped him I should have known and-“ 

“Hey, it’s okay.”

His voice was wrecked, cracked and raspy with his breaths coming as pained wheezes that made her pull away to look at him. 

“No, you could have died. You could have all died and it was my fault. I screwed up. I’m so sorry, MJ.” 

He coughed before MJ could try and defend him again, face scrunching in pain. He looked and sounded awful and MJ had no idea how he was still on his feet.

“Peter? Hey, breathe.”

His hand left her arm and wrapped around his chest, covering his side protectively as he groaned. “I think I broke some more ribs.”

“Some more?! They were already broken?!”

He groaned, wavering on his clumsy, stumbly feet. “Only some of them.”

He cried out in pain then, eyes scrunching shut as his knees gave out and MJ must have had a pretty good spidey tingle too because she caught him. 

She ducked down a little to catch him, his chest slamming against hers as she took his weight, arms wrapped around him. 

“Peter?” 

His only reply was his panting breaths against her neck, head lolling on her shoulder but it wasn’t until his arms around her fell slack that she realised he’d passed out. 

“Shit, shit, shit.” 

She lowered then both to the ground, which was a nice way of saying she fell to her knees, trying her best to be gentle with Peter. 

He was limp and heavy in her arms and she held him up against her chest as she dug around in her pockets for her phone. 

“Okay, we’re okay. You’re okay. You’re just passed out and I think you’re bleeding but everything’s going to be fine because you’re Spider-Man and Spider-Man’s not going to just die, right? ….right?”

She dialled Ned’s number and wedged the phone between her ear and her shoulder so that she could hold Peter with both arms. 

She closed her eyes as she listened to the dial tone, rocking them both a little as she waited. 

“Pleasepickuppleasepickuppleasepickup.”

“MJ?! Where did you go? We were-“

She didn’t feel bad about interrupting but she did hate the way her voice trembled. She just wanted Peter to wake up. 

“I got Peter. We’re on the bridge but he’s hurt and he said his ribs were broken and then he just passed out and I don’t know what to do! He doesn’t have his mask on, I can’t call an ambulance and-“

She sucked in a breath, biting her lip to stop the tears as Ned took his turn at interrupting. 

“Crap, okay hang on I’ll pass you to Happy.”

MJ thought she might have heard wrong. “What? Who’s Happy?” 

“How bad is it?” The voice offered no introductions or explanations but MJ recognised it as the man who said he worked with Spider-Man. 

“I-I don’t know. He was talking and then he just fell.” 

MJ didn’t trust adults with much but right then she was immensely glad that there was one that could take over. 

“Okay, I’m coming to get you. Stay where you are.” 

The call cut off and MJ dropped her phone to the ground and pressed her cheek to Peters' hair. She had always liked seeing him fuss over it in class and the way it sprang back up into curls when it rained. And now all she wanted was for him to wake up and act his normal, awkward self. 

“Please be okay.” 

::::::

Happy arrived not long after the call ended, sprinting across the bridge to get to them as first responders began to sweep the area. His eyes were wide and worried and he knelt beside the two, hands reaching for Peter. 

“Where’s his mask?”

MJ didn’t have time to reply, Happy quickly finding it in Peters slack grip and he shoved it back on the boys face as gently as he could. 

MJ was glad he seemed to know what he was doing and for once was content to follow the adult taking over.

“We need to get moving. I’ll take him, you just stay close, okay?” 

She nodded, lowering Peter down from her shoulder so that Happy could scoop him into his arms. He flopped, arms dangling as Happy tucked Peters head under his chin to keep it from rolling back. 

“Let’s go.”

MJ had seen the other jet blow up which was why she was so surprised when Happy led her to another one, shining and new just sitting there in the street. 

“I thought-”

“I had another flown in, Ned’s waiting inside.” 

Peter hadn’t reacted to anything since he’d passed out and MJ was getting worried. He didn’t move when Happy laid him down, head falling to the side when his mask was tugged off but Happy didn’t seem concerned. 

He settled the boy down and grabbed a medkit as he did a million other things at once. “Friday, take us home and start the “band-aid” protocol. Kid’s, take a seat and do up your belts.”

Ned slammed his butt down on a seat as the jet started up, his hand grappling for MJ and pulling her down in a seat next to him when she didn’t move. 

Ned’s eyes seemed to be flickering everywhere, bouncing between out the windows and at the tech around them but MJ couldn’t tear her eyes away from Peter. 

Screens had flickered to life around him at the protocol that Happy had started and he was flipping through the scans and data being displayed, cursing at each new injury presented. 

Broken ribs, concussion, second-degree burns, badly sprained knee, various sizes of contusions, lacerations all over-

“Does that say internal bleeding?” MJ could feel the jet level out as they got in the air and she leaned forward in her seat to try and see better. 

“It’s not that serious.” Happy didn’t look up from where he was pulling Peters suit off, tugging it down to his waist and revealing the bruises and cuts littered across the kid's chest. He didn’t wake up, body rocking as he was moved. 

Ned put a hand on MJ's arm, voice sweet and calm as he gestured to his friend. “I know it looks bad but he’ll be okay. He just gets really tired after missions and his body needs more rest so he can heal faster.”

Ned had said he’d known about Peter being Spider-Man for longer but it seemed bizarre that Ned would have such an intimate knowledge of his needs when he was hurt. 

“Has this happened before?” How many times had Peter been seriously injured as Spider-Man? How many times had he come to school hiding bruises under his sweater? 

A half-smile lifted one side of Ned's mouth as he watched Happy swipe cotton pads over Peters split lip. “He climbed through my window once and just passed out. I had to call Mr Stark to come get him but he was okay by Monday.”

MJ felt awful. It’s not like she was super close with Peter but they were friends and she hadn’t known any of it. 

She felt awful and she shivered, slumping in her seat as Happy spoke again, eyes still on his work. 

“Ned, I need you to call May and tell her what happened, she doesn’t need all the details just let her know everyone's safe and we’re coming home. MJ-”

She couldn't help the question that left her mouth though she knew it wasn’t the most important one she should be asking. 

“You know my name?” 

He didn’t skip a beat, hands busy. “I know everything about Peter, that includes who his friends are. Do you have any first aid training?”

MJ sputtered out an answer, Ned already on the phone beside her. “Kind of? We took a class but I don’t know if I can-”

“Good, I need help with him.”

MJ took her belt off and shuffled over to where Happy was kneeling, Peter laid out on the seat-turned bed. It was a lot to take in. Blood, cuts and bruises everywhere, suit pulled off and discarded. She had to admit she’d imagined him in his boxers before but not like that. 

She felt a little pervy seeing him so vulnerable when he was unconscious but Happy just handed over some sterilized gloves and kept going.

“I’ll do the stitching if you do everything that can be d-“ Happy cut himself off when he saw her pale face and shaking hands and he reached out for her, remembering that she was a kid. 

It was easy to forget with a kid like Peter, that not all teenagers were as brave as Spider-man. 

“Hey, are you okay? He’s alright, none of his injuries are too serious. If you’re not comfortable with this that’s okay. I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to it’s just better to get this done while he’s asleep. He tends to squirm around.” 

MJ tore her eyes from Peters sleeping face and nodded, steeling herself against her nerves. “No, I can do it.” 

Happy nodded and pointed to a mini-fridge set in the wall. “Good. There should be some ice packs in there. Put one under his right knee and one over it. And elevate it if you can.”

MJ nodded and got to work, grabbing the ice and doing as he’d said. She knew that she needed to lift Peters knee above his heart to reduce the swelling and she tried to be gentle but he still shifted at her touch. 

The knee was swollen and hot, purple bruising already wrapping around the limb. As soon as she lifted it Peter let out a groan, head turning towards her and hand searching out to push her away. 

“Sorry!” 

Happy caught Peters hand and pressed it back down, other hand going for the medkit as he soothed the teenager. ”You’re okay, kid. Just let me get this in ya.”

He pulled an autoinjector from the kit and pressed the end to Peters' bicep, the hiss and click met with a flinch and a sigh of relief. 

Peter melted back into sleep, limbs pliant once more and Happy went back to work, starting to stitch up the gash on the teenager's thigh. 

“I just gave him something to help him sleep. He’ll be out for the rest of the flight home.”

He was so casual about it, so calm. Every action and word was practised, a heavy sigh falling from him like he’d done it one too many times to be fazed now. 

MJ grabbed an alcohol wipe and started on the endless list of cuts spread over Peter's skin, focussing on one particularly bad one on his chest. It looked like a bullet wound without the giant bloody hole, gruesome instead in the heavy bruise spreading out from the point of impact.

Whatever it was that had hit him had broken the skin but hadn’t gone deep and she did her best to clean the muck from it without making it any worse. 

She wasn’t sure what made her say it but she felt like she needed to. “So, he really is Spider-man. I thought he was but I didn’t even take into account all…this.” 

Ned was still quietly talking on the phone, no doubt checking up on Betty where she and Flash had been reunited with the class. 

Happy spared a glance in between stitches and MJ made sure she kept her gaze away from the bloody mess. 

“He’s stronger than he looks. And I mean that literally. I’ve seen him throw a car. He’ll be okay.” 

MJ kept her gaze on her hands where she taped down a bandage on one cut and moved on the next. “But that means he went into space. He fought Thanos and aliens and monsters and-“

Happy sounded so tired. “He saw Tony die.”

MJ’s hands stilled on Peters warm skin, palms pressing flat to his chest to feel the rise and fall of his breaths as Happy continued. 

“He hasn’t had it easy. The poor kid has gone through more than he ever should have and I hate to say this but...by now he’s done it enough times that he knows how to deal with it. And he has help, remember? Tony made his suit to keep him safe while he does his thing and now that Tony’s gone I’m his back up whenever he needs it.” 

MJ took a deep breath, matching it to Peters and took her hands away, grabbing another wipe for Peters grazed knuckles. 

“Well, now he has me too. I mean, I can’t fight aliens or throw cars but I’ll steal a mace from the queen's vault anytime he needs it.” 

Happy made a face, looking over at the weapon that MJ had insisted on bringing, where it was sitting on one of the seats. “Yeah, we probably need to return that.” 

::::::

It wasn’t until hours later when they were getting ready to land that Peter stirred. He’d been silent and unmoving the entire trip back and MJ and Ned had been taking turns holding his hand, worried about how he’d be when he woke. 

Happy had watched the footage from his suit and decided that Peter was going to need some space when he woke up and remembered the fight. 

MJ wasn’t happy about that, or about the fact that this adult whom she did not know had decided to order her around, but looking at Peter hurt and knocked out she decided to let him handle it. They obviously had history and Peter clearly trusted him. 

If it hadn’t been obvious from the rescuing Happy had done it would be enough to see him taking care of Peter. He was so gentle, hurrying over to the teenager the second he started moving. 

“Hey, Pete. Stay still, don’t move around too much.”

MJ held herself back and stayed in her seat as Happy knelt next to Peter, hand pressing to the back of the boy's neck as he helped ease him up. 

“Take it slow, kid. I gotcha. Just breathe for a second.”

Peter was barely awake, eyes still closed, frown creasing his face as small moans of discomfort left his mouth but Happy was so quiet and calm, hands always where Peter needed them. 

“Happy?”

The man nodded, ducking down to try and catch Peters eyes where his head was slumped forward, hair falling into his face. “I’m right here, Pete. Can you open your eyes for me?”

Peter grunted, swinging his head to the side as he squeezed his eyes shut tighter. Happy apparently knew exactly what it meant and wrapped his arm around Peter, letting him lean into him as he covered his eyes with his hand.

“I know, sorry, I need the lights on so I can take care of you. How are you feeling? Do you remember what happened?”

Peter tucked his face into Happy’s neck, sighing in his hold as Happy looked down at him. 

“Hmm. Don’ feel good.” 

Happy didn’t seem to be too bothered that Peter hadn’t answered his last question and removed his hand from Peter's eyes to brush absently at his hair. He looked almost embarrassed about it like he’d never have done it if Peter was lucid but it seemed to calm them both. 

“I know, buddy it’ll go away. Do you know where you are?”

Peter hummed and pressed his forehead to Happy’s neck, hand coming up to grip the man's shirt as he mumbled. “M’with Happy.”

Happy smiled at that and closed his eyes for a moment. “Yeah, you are.”

MJ watched his expression carefully, trying to figure out what kind of relationship they had. Happy said he worked with Spider-Man but their display led her to believe they had far more between them than missions and hero work. It seemed more like family to her and she knew that Peter didn’t have much of that left. 

He was floppy and heavy in Happy’s hold, looking so fragile as he slurred his words around his split lip but Happy’s careful hand on his forehead told her she could trust him with her friend.

Happy tightened the arm around Peter, hugging him close to try and rouse him further but only serving to jostle him against his chest. Peter mumbled something and Happy nodded. “Yeah, buddy, we’re going home. I just need you to eat and drink something before we touch down, okay? You think you can sit up a little and have some water?”

Peter nodded and allowed Happy to sit him up, pressing a water bottle into Peters' palm and then lifting the bottle and the kid's hand to his mouth. Peters' eyes were still closed as Happy got the water into him, a sandwich quickly following after before he turned to MJ, phone in his hand. 

“I need to call ahead for his doctors to let them know we’re coming. Can you sit with him and make sure he eats some more?”

MJ quickly nodded and took his place as he moved to the back of the plane for some quiet. 

Peter was still slumped in his seat, sitting up with his head hanging low and swaying with the movement of the plane. His curls were in his face and he was hiccupping quietly, eyes still closed and the blanket Happy draped around his shoulders clutched in one hand. It was adorable and MJ bit her lip to try and get the blushing to stop. 

“Hey, Peter. You want another sandwich?”

He hiccupped again and lifted her head jerkily at her voice, eyes squinting open to look at her. 

“Hey, M..mem..MJ. HIC.”

She couldn't hold back her smile as she sat next to him on the couch and waved a sandwich in front of his nose. “Hey, loser. Eat this.”

He blinked at the offered food and swayed some more before swinging a clumsy hand out for the snack. 

The movement seemed to get Ned's attention and he laughed quietly as he joined their little circle. 

“Hey, man. Crazy day, huh? How are you feeling?”

Peter took another bite of his sandwich and sighed, laying his head down on a very surprised MJ’s shoulder. 

“Ti-HIC-tired. Where’s MJ?”

Ned opened his mouth to inform him that he was drooling on her when Peter spoke again, words curling with his suddenly dopey smile.

“She’s so pretty and so-HIC- smart and she teases me sometimes but I like it.”

Ned and MJ shared a look, trying their best to hide their laughter as Ned nodded along. 

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, and I really, really like her. But don’t tell her that.”

MJ bit down on a laugh as Peter yawned against her shoulder, Ned’s voice pitching up as he laughed through his words. 

“I promise, it’s just between you and me.”

Peter eyes suddenly opened and whined, worried. “Wait, I think she knows! Ned, I thi-HIC-I think I told her!”

Ned's eyebrows bounced up as he looked to MJ. She nodded, but she looked proud of the fact. 

Peter seemed to remember more of the conversation and smiled. “Dude, she kissed me.”

MJ blushed again, not meeting Ned’s eyes as he practically bounced in his seat, whisper yelling in excitement. “You guys kissed?! Oh my god! 

“You, kids better be behaving up there! Peter, I hope you finished your sandwich!”

Happy’s voice made the three of them jump, Ned reaching forward to shove Peters sandwich into his mouth as he and MJ replied back in sync. “Yes, Mr Happy.”

::::::::

“Okay, everyone back in your seats for landing. Seatbelts on.”

Peter moved to stand up when MJ did, only to slump back on his seat at Happy's hand on his chest. “Not you. Here, talk to your Aunt, tell her you’re okay.”

Happy pressed his phone to Peters' ear with one hand as he did the kid's belt up with the other, gently tugging the blanket tighter around his shoulders as Peter slurred. 

“Hey, May...Yeah, I’m okay. Happy’s taking care of me...Yeah, I had a sandwich but it’s cold ‘cause I’m naked, I think...No, I have boxers on.” 

Happy pulled the phone back and pressed it to his own ear, looking more stressed than when they’d been in the vault. “He’s fine, May. I’ll get him dressed and checked out and I’ll have the doctor call you.”

He hung up and pulled a small pile of folded sweats from the same cabinet he’d gotten the medkit from and started wrestling them onto Peter. 

The plane dipped and MJ grabbed onto the sidearm of her seat but the movement seemed to wake Peter some and he looked up at Happy where he was pushing his arms through some sleeves

“Hey, Happy?”

Happy hummed, concentration set on tugging the sweatshirt over Peter's head. 

“Mr Stark loved me, right?”

Happy’s hands stopped, eyes jumping to Peters innocent eyes, still hazy from the medication. 

“Of course, Peter. Why would you even need to ask that?”

Peter’s bottom lip wobbled and MJ thought it might have been the saddest thing in the world seeing him like that. 

“Beck told me that…” He hiccuped again, half sniffle half sob and MJ pressed her fingers to her mouth, never seeing him look so breakable. 

“He told me that if I’d been better Mr Stark might still be alive.”

Happy was frozen, rage for that monster, Mysterio, boiling within him and breaking him apart from the inside when Peter whimpered his next words. 

“Was it my fault?”

Happy jumped forward then, wrapping Peter in his arms and hugging his as fiercely as he could. 

“No. Of course not and Tony would have hated that Beck had ever said that it was.”

He pulled back and knelt in front of the teenager, hands pressing against his cheeks as Peter cried. “Look at me, kid. Tony loved you so much that he invented time travel just to get you back. Okay? Trust me when I say there is nothing about you that he would ever change.”

Peter sniffled and Happy swiped his thumbs over his cheeks. “He loved you, Pete. He loved you more than anything.”

The moment seemed so private but MJ couldn't look away as Happy sat on the couch next to Peter and tugged him to his side, holding him as Peter cried. 

MJ wasn’t much of a crier and she’d seen Peter cry before. At school a few times after his uncle had died, once when they watched UP as a class but there, on that jet, was the first time she’d wanted to grab him, hold tight and never let go. He seemed to have that effect on a lot of people. 

Happy held him close and brushed his hair back, soothing him with a string of coos. “I got you, you’re okay. Take some deep breaths, buddy. I know, I know.”

The jet, being the most expensive thing MJ had ever seen let alone been in, was smooth as silk as they landed and although Peter had stopped crying, he didn’t move from Happy’s shoulder until he was gently pulled away. 

“Pete, we’re going to get you inside now, so you can get checked out and go to bed. Can you take some deep breaths for me?”

Peter nodded and did as he was told as Happy gently wiped a tissue over his face. “Good job. Now, you’ve hurt your knee and your thigh so, they’re going to get you on a stretcher so, we’re just going to wait until they get here.”

Peter nodded again, quiet voice sounding a little brighter as he rubbed at his eye with a curled fist. “Is Dr Cho coming?”

“Yeah, she’s gonna take care of you.”

MJ felt so separated from their little moment that a part of her was worried Happy had forgotten about them, but he turned to them as soon as the doors opened. 

“You guys stay close and try not to touch anything when we go inside.”

MJ just nodded, not even knowing where they were. 

It all happened fairly quickly. A woman walked in with a soft smile and greeted Peter, who looked happy to see her before Happy scooped him up and they walked out of the jet. 

Ned grabbed MJ’s arm as they exited, not wanting to get left behind as they followed the stretcher Peter had been laid on. 

Even looking up at the building they were about to enter, MJ still didn’t know where they were and the giant Avengers symbol on the side was only making things more confusing. 

“Um, Happy?”

The man looked up from where he was gripping the side of Peters stretcher, straps holding the teenager on it so he didn’t bounce around from the movement. “Keep your heads down, I’ll explain when we get Peter sorted.”

Dr Cho and Peter seemed to know each other pretty well and she took Peter into what appeared to be a medical wing, glass doors closing behind them as Happy took MJ and Ned in another direction. 

“Look, I know there’s a lot to explain but you both need to eat something first.”

Food hadn’t even been near the top of MJ’s priority list but he was right and she stayed quiet as he led them both to a plush suite, sitting them on a couch and shoving sandwiches into their hands. 

MJ had been so focussed on Peter that she wasn’t sure where he’d grabbed them from but she took it as she asked. “Is Peter going to be okay?”

Happy sighed and sank down into his own seat across from the two teenagers, looking too tired for any of it. “He’ll be okay. Helen’s patched him up before, she knows what she’s doing.”

MJ watched him scratch idly at a spot of blood that had dried on his sleeve. “I meant...with everything that happened.”

Happy didn’t seem to want to answer that one and wiped a hand over his face, changing topics as if she hadn’t asked in the first place. 

“Look, after today and your wreck of a vacation, I think it’s best if you both stay here the night. Your parents and teacher have been contacted already and they know your safe. I told them you were being monitored as a precaution and I’ll be dropping you both off at home tomorrow.”

“Where are we exactly?” Ned’s words were muffled by the bread in his mouth but MJ agreed with the sentiment and nodded. 

“You’re at the Avengers compound.”

“WHAT?!” Ned practically jumped from his seat and Happy held his hands out. 

“So, I need you to stay in here. Do you understand? If you go wandering about you could trip all kinds of alarms and I don’t need anything else to deal with right now. Peter has his own bedroom here and once he’s been cleared from medical he’ll be right across the hall.”

MJ opened her mouth to ask if she could stay with him but Happy was already shaking his head. 

“I know what you’re going to ask and I’m sorry but it’s best if you stay here. He needs to rest.”

Ned didn’t like the idea any more than MJ did but Happy wasn’t having it. “Mr Happy, we’ll be quiet. We won’t wake him, I promise.”

Happy sighed, eyes shifting between the two of them as his voice softened and went quiet. 

“Guys...Peter has nightmares. Pretty bad ones and I know that he wouldn’t want you to see them. He’ll be okay, I’ll take care of him. All you two need to do is take care of yourselves.”

It wasn’t a plan that MJ liked but there wasn’t anything she could do about it, so she nodded, deciding not to give the very tired adult in front of her anything else to stress over. 

:::::::::

Peter was cleared from medical a few hours later, after Ned and MJ had both showered and eaten, exhaustion catching up on them. 

MJ could hear Happy talking quietly to the nice doctor from the plane as they got Peter into bed and she cracked the door open a little to see. 

“He’ll need to keep the brace on for a couple of days but he should be completely healed by the end of the week.”

Happy was helping Peter out of his wheelchair and into bed as he nodded along to what the doctor was saying. “That’s good, huh Pete? Thanks, Helen.”

She smiled and said goodnight to Peter before leaving them to it and MJ watched as Happy tucked the boy in. 

“MJ and Ned are in the room across from you here and I’ll just be on the other side of this wall, okay? If you need anything just tell Friday to come get me.”

Peter looked exhausted; bandaged and taped together, eyes blinking up at Happy sleepily as he lay back against his pillows. “Thanks, Happy.”

MJ could just make out the man's smile as he brushed Peters hair back. “No problem, Pete. Get some sleep.”

Peter let his eyes close, content that he was safe and fell asleep before Happy’s hand had even left his forehead. 

:::::::::::::

It was early the next morning when the screams woke MJ. 

She hadn’t been having the most pleasant dream herself and she gasped awake at the screams piercing the air. Ned shot up in the bed beside hers and they both scrambled for the door, panic pushing them forwards at the sound of Peters calls for help. 

“Mr Stark! I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Please! Mr Stark, I can’t do this!”

They made it to the door and swung it open in time to see Happy racing from his room to Peters, panicked face finding theirs as he went. 

“Get back to bed!”

His quick words stopped their feet from moving forward any more but they didn’t retreat, choosing instead to close the door just enough to be able to see without being seen. 

Happy ran in and reached for the teenager where he sobbed in his sleep, calling out for him and jolting him from his dream. 

“Peter! Wake up!”

The hero cried out as he snapped awake, hands scrabbling against the mattress as he pushed himself against the headboard, away from Happy.

“It’s just me, kid! You’re okay. It was just a nightmare.”

Peter’s chest was heaving with the effort to breath and his arm came around his chest protectively as his ribs screamed in pain. He looked terrified, free hand reaching out not for Happy but to keep him away. 

“Happy? Is it you?”

The man nodded, hands outstretched and waiting but not moving forward. They seemed to have practised this dance before. 

Pete watched him and sobbed, still scared of whatever his nightmare had shown him. “No, I can’t...I can’t be sure. Tell me something only you would know.”

Even half hidden behind the door MJ could see how sad the question made Happy and his shoulders slumped as he answered. 

“There was this one night and it was raining really bad. You missed the train after school and you were walking home but it was too cold so, you called me to come pick you up. I brought you to the tower and Tony made you hot chocolate to try and warm you up.”

Peter bit his lip as his chin trembled, tears streaming down his cheeks but he no longer looked so scared. He watched Happy with rapt attention as he kept going. 

“He was fussing and worried because you were still shivering so he took off his hoodie and gave it to you. He said you could keep it, that he had plenty but really he wanted you to have it. He knew you were having a rough time and thought it would help.”

The story seemed to break whatever spell Peter's dream had put him under and he dropped his hand, crying even harder as Happy finally surged forward and hugged him. They sat there, Happy rocking the both of them gently as Peter hugged him back just as fiercely, words just a whisper against his shoulder. 

“It did.”

**Author's Note:**

> tell me what you think? this is a one shot sorry


End file.
